The national debt is over $14 trillion, the federal budget deficit is $1.4 trillion and, depending on whose estimates are used, the unfunded liability or indebtedness of the federal government (mostly in the form of obligations for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and prescription drugs) is estimated to be between $60 and $100 trillion.

Those entitlements along with others account for nearly 60 percent of federal spending. They are what Congress calls mandatory or non-discretionary spending. Then there's discretionary spending, half of which is for national defense. Each year, non-discretionary spending consumes a higher and higher percent of the federal budget.

The spending path that Congress has chosen for the last half-century is unsustainable and will end up with economic collapse but little or nothing can be done about it unless I'm grossly wrong about the American people. Americans who detest our country and those who love our country are hell-bent, wittingly or unwittingly, on destroying it.

You say, "Williams, that's not only insulting but shows little trust as well. Explain yourself!"

For the past 30 years, federal tax revenues have averaged 18 percent of the GDP. Federal spending, nearing 30 percent of our GDP, is the problem. To get our economic house in order, there must be large spending cuts, not only in so-called discretionary spending but in non-discretionary spending as well.

To put this in perspective: Defense spending is called discretionary and totals $685 billion. Our deficit is $1.4 trillion. Defense spending could be entirely eliminated and we'd still have a massive deficit. Any congressman unwilling to make cuts in entitlement spending is not to be taken seriously about sparing our nation from economic collapse.

Millions of Americans don't want their entitlement touched, many of whom are senior citizens. Seniors will tell you that they were forced into Social Security and Medicare, and any congressman talking about cutting those and other entitlements will face their wrath at the ballot box. By the way, according to one study, "Until recent years, Social Security recipients received more, often far more, than the value of the Social Security taxes they paid. For workers who earned average wages and retired in 1980 at age 65, it took 2.8 years to recover the value of the retirement portion of the combined employee and employer shares of their Social Security taxes plus interest."

Seniors are not the only group who can put the fear of God into politicians. There are massive corporate handouts through programs like the Export-Import Bank, Agriculture Department business and farm subsidies, and the Small Business Administration. Then there's massive Department of Education spending on K-12 education and higher education. The list of federal programs, described as taking the earnings of one American and giving them to another, numbers in the thousands.

Everyone who receives government largesse and special favors deems his needs as vital, deserving, proper and in the national interest. It is entirely unreasonable to expect a politician to honor and obey our Constitution and in the process commit political suicide. What's even worse for our nation is that voters ousting a politician who'd refuse to bring, say, aid to higher education back to his constituents is perfectly rational.

If, for example, he's a Virginia politician and doesn't bring higher education grants back to his constituents, it doesn't mean Virginian taxpayers will pay a lower income tax. All it means is that Marylanders will get the money instead. Once legalized theft begins, it pays for everyone to participate. Those who don't will be losers. That's the nation's dilemma.

The most important job for people who want to spare our nation from economic collapse is not that of persuading politicians to do the right thing but to convince our fellow Americans to respect the limits of our Constitution. In his speech to Virginia's ratifying convention, James Madison said, "Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it; no constitution, no law, no court can even do much to help it."

When Art 1 Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution does not require or authorize it, the feds have no business doing it.

That alone would cut more than 2/3rds of the federal spending, and we ought to begin working towards complying with the Constitution before it loses its remaining value to this country.

The leftist pansies who are running (ruining) this nation have been using our Constitution for toilet paper. They are traitors. Barry is blameless as he isn't even a legitimate citizen. He's just a criminal, muslim communist puppet whose strings are being pulled by Soros and the rest of the internationalist conspiracy.

If you’re a principled business owner competing against another business that uses government to get a favorable regulation or subsidy, YOU LOSE.

If you obey the law, hire personnel, and pay the appropriate payroll taxes for your employees, while your competitor pays illegal aliens under the table, YOU LOSE.

If you live responsibly and save for retirement while your irresponsible neighbor gets a handout or government intentionally inflates away the value of your life savings, YOU LOSE.

If you live a moral life, don’t cheat on your spouse, and provide for your children while the welfare mom down the street gets a payout for every child she pushes out while living with her boyfriend in secret, YOU LOSE.

How is an honest, moral, responsible person supposed to take care of themselves and their family when the system is rigged to the advantage of lawbreakers, liars, and cheats?

Our entire Federal government needs to be torn down and rebuilt on the Constitution and the Bill or Rights. Same thing for the DoJ. States themselves need to sit down, look at the BoR, and sh*tcan anything that violates it. The 10th gives them power not ceded to the Fedgov, but some things are off limits even to them.

All of this needs to happen or we will be just another footnote in History.

5
posted on 01/27/2011 7:27:17 AM PST
by Dead Corpse
(III%. The last line in the sand)

Prof. Wiliams is totally correct. Too bad CBS News simply looked the other way when Obama’s failed economic ideas were made manifest during the 2008 campaign and chose instead to be part of his propaganda machine.

6
posted on 01/27/2011 7:36:38 AM PST
by The Great RJ
(The Bill of Rights: Another bill members of Congress haven't read.)

No way. The most likely way to deal with the debt is to monetize the debt and bring on hyper inflation. The other, less likely result will be a revolution such as occurred in Germany during the Weimer Republic days. We are kaput! Even the Tea Partiers are not willing to cut enough to make any meaningful differences.

Compare the US to the Soviet Union before it crashed and dissolved. The Soviets went down because of money problems. Couldn’t support what Khrushchev grand ideas. What are our problems. Not enough money to support Zero’s grand ideas.

We have already slipped under the water and are drowning but not many in DC seem to recognize it.

This year at the SOTU address, when I saw dozens of members of Congress choose what they termed as “bipartisan seating”. In actual fact they were showing the American viewers that the US Congress is now a one party congress.

Yes, thats what I said. There’s no substantial difference in the parties anymore. The US Congress is essentially a ONE PARTY congress. One goal in a ONE PARTY government is a Communist government. Sure we don’t have to admit the truth yet but we know what it is. The Republic is gone.

If the Tea Party stands up on its hind legs and kicks the out the Communist government maybe we’ll still have the strength to break the surface and start gasping for air once again.

15
posted on 01/27/2011 9:54:10 AM PST
by B4Ranch
(Do NOT remain seated until this ride comes to a full and complete stop! We're going the wrong way!)

I like Rand Paul and I think this is great but I doubt it will be pushed through. On the plus side when the interest rates skyrocket like they did in the early 1980’s you may be able to make a little money for prepping before the crash.

Y’all have any comment on this sort of thing. Seems like there have been a number of such stories recently.

And how do you relate all such—if you do at all—to the contention—supposedly with good evidence—that the solar system—our galaxy is a vast . . . electrical system in some powerful ways, degrees . . . which evidently influences our pole shift potential etc. etc. etc. as well as geo-magnetic and gravitic factors.

This video was done on the 15th and shows Seismic readings from just about every country on the globe with abnormal heightened seismic activity and some with magma activity.

The earth seems to be doing something world wide. Is this perhaps a prelude of more to come? This does not seem normal. This guy is saying it isn’t normal so maybe the ATS resident experts can weigh in here and tell us if this is normal? He also mentions HAARP and their recent high level of activity and wonders if it is related but does not seem stuck on it. Even without HAARP it certainly appears that something major is going here so I’d like to get opinions on this

Also at the end he shows a map put out by the Navy of what the US will look like after a major quake on the New Madrid Fault line.

A REPLY ON THE THREAD ABOVE:

Great vid.. then he mentioned Nibiru. I just cant believe that yet.

ANyway, here is a great link for everyone to check their area. Im in the New Madrid.. I check the USGS pretty regularly lately. You guys here on ATS have scared me to death over it. (nervous laughter)

earthquake.usgs.gov...

anyone here can tell you Im no chicken little.. In fact today Ive been called a govt shill several times ( and scum once) due to not being overly excited over the lockdown.. BUT this stuff has me pretty concerned. Im not very young.. Ive been watching quakes for yrs. Im definitely NO expert and look many times to the wonderful folks here to point me in the right direction.. but this.. this is an issue that needs to be monitored. Not to fearmonger, I hate that because some folks are so sensitive and I dont want to contribute to their anxiety over these things.... but I pray that everyone takes this very serious. Its not like alien theory ( dont get pissed.. just my opinion) and all of that.. this is hard core with evidence in your face real. Its our planet and she has a nasty history of getting pissed off.

The Navy map shows me being dead. I already knew this as Ive been a first responder for a while.. I just want to make sure that everyone understand the threat .. even though I truly pray they are wrong. The maps arent hard and fast facts because they are projections and computer simulations... that map is one of about 100 scenarios that have been tossed around.. .. dont decide not to prepare just because your area may be seen as possibly underwater. Prepare anyway. Stock up on your meds and make sure you make plans on meeting places for family.. even if you think its stupid or futile.. just do it anyway.

I want to tell you that the govt cant handle this disaster.. they will not save you and its your responsibility to make sure you have a chance.The govt will ALWAYS make sure it can maintain itself before worrying about YOU. First responders cant save everyone and if you prepare, you at least have better odds of surviving. There are factors in this scenario that you can not imagine and are horrifying considering what we FR’s have been told over the last 2 years. Just prepare.. and if nothing happens.. say WHEW.. boy was she crazy and use your prepared goods to have a great family camping trip.

It can be saved, but it won’t be. The political system is now too far gone, too corrupt, to allow the changes needed. As those in Rome knew, once the people can rob their neighbors through property and income taxes and vote themselves money from the treasury in the form of “welfare” the nation is doomed to end.

23
posted on 01/27/2011 4:01:34 PM PST
by CodeToad
(Islam needs to be banned in the US and treated as a criminal enterprise.)

Keep in mind that these are the FEMA camps and FUSION Centers that are constantly denied to exist by both the politicians and the mainstream media.

The totalitarian police state is being built right around you every day. Telescreens in stores, hotels, sports complexes, and malls. Cameras on every corner, and soon a citizen army immune from liability for false accusations.

Related thread showing Bill to give citizen spies immunity

Video showing fusion centers EVERYWHERE in the U.S.:

In reading this, I’m reminded of FEMA recruiting several thousand pastors across the country to encourage church goers to submit to the “authorities”. They even went so far as to tell the pastors what bible verses were good to accomplish this. And gave them a FEMA booklet to read.

So this is not surprising. It’s just the next step in preparation for what’s coming down the road. S&F OP.

Lightning and fire: Japan on alert after volcano’s biggest eruption in 50 years

A one-mile cordon has been established around a volcano on Mount Kirishima after it erupted scattering rocks and ash across southern Japan and sending smoke billowing 5,000ft into the air.

The Meteorological Agency raised the volcanic alert to level 3 as ash today continued to spew from Shinmoedake on Japan’s southernmost main island of Kyushu, and residents have been banned from going within a mile of the volcano following its worst eruption in 50 years.

UK-based Cella Energy has developed a synthetic fuel that could lead to US$1.50 per gallon gasoline. Apart from promising a future transportation fuel with a stable price regardless of oil prices, the fuel is hydrogen based and produces no carbon emissions when burned. The technology is based on complex hydrides, and has been developed over a four year top secret program at the prestigious Rutherford Appleton Laboratory near Oxford. Early indications are that the fuel can be used in existing internal combustion engined vehicles without engine modification.

According to that Navy map, we’ll be right on the beach if the New Madrid hits. I actually wish we were a bit further east, but it’s not likely to happen because husband is too tied to this area. I’m not so much, although I like it well enough here. However, choosing between living and drowning; I don’t have any qualms about relocating. Maybe it won’t happen; hope not anyway. Preparing anyway to a sensible degree. (We went hog wild with preps for Y2K until we were, frankly, exhausted from preparing. We used the stored things, though, anyway.)

I personally think Y2K was a dry run to help folks get used to preparing for disaster. I didn’t see it wasted at all.

And, some computer types worked very hard long hours to make it a nonevent.

Nevertheless, the more accurate prophetic Christians in my circles in Taiwan knew it was not going to be a dramatic problem and said so.

Similar folks here in the States now are insisting that prep is Godly, wise, essential . . . particularly spiritual prep. . . . but also food and financial to the extent workable—not in a panic or fear . . . in wisdom and trusting in God to fill in the gaps beyond what individuals cannot do.

I don’t think we will be able to fix the country without a crash and rebuilding. We are socially trashed and economically trashed and no one is going to permit it to be fixed because it would be drastic measures away from National and International socialism and it’s destructive multiculturalism.

We tried for a lot of years to fix the messes and liberals worked like termites ten times as hard to destory the country through education, non-profits and institutions even when they did not have power in Washington. They won. They brought down “racist America.”

One major hurdle to saving our country stems from the fact that so many people are now living off of government welfare. We all know people who are on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment, food stamps, etc. A first good step forward will be to means test Social Security and Medicare so that only the truly needy receive it. Any fraud should be met with the severest of penalties.

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